Hygiene kits donated to pregnant mothers, children

Saturday, October 30, 2010 – 3:13 pm
Source: Guyana Chronicle - who are affected, infected by HIV/AIDS THE Ministry of Education, through its HIV&AIDS Prevention Project of the School Health, Nutrition and HIV/AIDS Unit, on Wednesday, donated a quantity of hygiene kits to the Ministry of Health and the Georgetown Public Hospital. The donation, including 700 kits of soap, towels, combs, toothpaste and tooth brushes, will be distributed to all the HIV&AIDS treatment sites for orphan and vulnerable children infected and affected by HIV&AIDS, under the supervision of the National Aids Programme Secretariat (NAPS). Another package of 140 new-born kits of receiving blankets, baby gowns, cloth diapers, pins, socks, hats and soap will be distributed to pregnant mothers at the Georgetown Public Hospital; and HIV/AIDS Focal Point within the Ministry of Education, Janelle Sweatnam, who made the handing over on behalf of Education Minister Shaik Baksh, used the opportunity to distribute few of the kits. HIV/AIDS Focal Point within the Ministry of ...

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More work on demystifying HIV/AIDS, psychiatric care needed in Linden

Wednesday, August 18, 2010 – 2:37 pm
–volunteer says at medical outreach An Overseas Medical Assistance Team (OMAT) at the Women’s Wellness Forum hosted as part of activities of the Linden Fund USA week-long medical outreach says there is still much work to be done to demystify the risk factors for HIV/AIDS. A large number of women from various religious, governmental, NGOs and communities turned out for the Forum which focused on empowering women on issues such as domestic violence, child abuse, HIV/AIDS and the importance of medical check-ups. As regard HIV/AIDS OMAT’s Dian John said there is much work to be done in educating not only the general public but community/civic leaders, medical professionals, educational staff and youths to demystify the risk factors for HIV/AIDS and their prevention. “A recent study has shown that teenage girls between the age of 15-19 years are at greater risk of contracting HIV than teen age boys of the same age group yet ...

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Business coalition garners US$24,000 for HIV/AIDS effort

Friday, August 6, 2010 – 2:45 pm
Source: Stabroek News Republic, Scotia Bank, NAMILCO, Beharry Group lauded for workplace campaign The 44-member Guyana Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (GBCHA) continues to make a noteworthy private sector contribution to the national effort to combat the scourge of HIV/AIDS, garnering a total of US$24,000 in cash and other contributions since October 2009, according to information released recently by its Orange Walk, Bourda Secretariat. A document released by the Secretariat ahead of the GBCHA’s July 29 Second Annual General Meeting stated that apart from its fund-raising pursuits, the Coalition’s testing site set up at its Secretariat had been the second most productive site across the country reaching more than 800 individuals with HIV prevention information and testing more than 1,600 persons since December 2009.  Additionally, the GBCHA says that since October last year, 49 persons representing its member companies have benefitted from peer educator training and refresher training programmes. At its fourth Annual Awards for ...

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Condom use in Caribbean unacceptably low, fuelling HIV – epidemiologist

Tuesday, August 3, 2010 – 4:47 pm
Source: Stabroek News Condom use during sex in the Caribbean remains unacceptably low in an environment where HIV transmissions are still high, epidemiologist Professor Peter Figueroa says, and he also points out that the sexual habit of multiple partners is fuelling the epidemic in many countries. Some progress is visible across the region but prevalence remains high, according to Figueroa and he hesitated to name more than three countries that are turning things around with respect to prevalence (based on the available data); he cited Haiti, The Bahamas and the Dominican Republic. It was during a meeting of regional stakeholders in Vienna at the AIDS 2010 conference on Wednesday night that Figueroa of Jamaica pointed to the problems in the region. What he identified as perhaps the most serious issue is the realization that a considerable amount of Caribbean heterosexual men have multiple sex transactions outside of an intimate relationship. “…There are large groups ...

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Controversial HIV motion sent to select committee

Saturday, July 31, 2010 – 4:48 pm
Source: Stabroek News A controversial motion which seeks to institute legislation to hold persons criminally responsible for wilfully infecting others with HIV was on Thursday sent to a special select committee. The motion, moved by GAP/ROAR MP Everall Franklin, sought to have the relevant laws of Guyana amended to make the wilful transmission of the HIV virus from one person to another an indictable offence. In addition, it sought to have non-disclosure laws or guidelines be amended to allow for information to be used by prosecution if so required and for hospitals, clinics and such agencies which have the results of tests and other vital information be bound by law to release such information to any court engaged in a matter. The motion also sought to have a charge of attempted murder instituted against any individual found to have endangered the life of another in a wilful manner. While speaking on the motion, ...

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Nurses urged to end HIV stigma

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 – 4:20 pm
Source: Stabroek News We have been trained, know the facts; we know that we can throw our [arms] around them. We know these things yet some of us still stigmatise those living with HIV,” Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy said at a graduation ceremony for 24 nurses at the Project Dawn building, Liliendaal yesterday. The minister was at the time delivering the feature address to the nurses who graduated from a ‘HIV Basics for Nurses’ training programme hosted by the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. Ramsammy urged the graduates to be agents of change by educating those who are not privy to information. “We as health care workers can make a difference and eliminate HIV as a public health problem,” he said. The goal is for every health care worker to be knowledgeable about HIV/AIDS. The minister said while he was proud that there has been a reduction in the number of deaths caused ...

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Motion to criminalise HIV transmission ‘dangerous’

Thursday, July 22, 2010 – 4:50 pm
Source: Stabroek News - AIDS committee calls for its rejection A motion before the National Assembly to have persons face justice for intentionally infecting others with HIV has been described as ill-informed and dangerous by the National AIDS Committee (NAC) which also said that regardless of what motivated the motion it should be “roundly rejected”. The motion is to be moved by Everall Franklin, the representative of the Guyana Action Party/Rise, Organise and Rebuild Guyana (GAP/ROAR) coalition in the House. According to the NAC, the authors of the motion, which is expected to be debated today in parliament, appear to be oblivious to the long and difficult worldwide debate over the issue of intentional transmission of HIV. This debate has concluded that legal remedies are complex to fashion, difficult to apply and ultimately counter-productive, NAC added. In a press release issued yesterday, the NAC also said that the motion would arrive at being counter-productive “even ...

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Guyana has HIV target in sights – Singh

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 – 4:32 pm
Source: Stabroek News – more work to be done among youth; on condom use To be on pace with the targets set for HIV/AIDS Guyana is expected to achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it. Reports suggest the country has reached that target though some doubts still persist, but Guyana continues to wrestle with other targets including better promotion of condom use and educating a young population which remains at serious risk. Of major concern in the local fight is the indication that messages about the epidemic appear to be missing many young people; a realization which has hit home following the results of several behavioural surveys conducted among in and out of school youth. The most recent survey points to an increase in sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among the young at-risk population. The rise in STIs among that particular group is cause for major concern Director ...

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Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS shares awards

Wednesday, June 30, 2010 – 4:22 pm
Source: Guyana Chronicle Six private sector entities were on Friday night honoured when the Guyana Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (GBCHA) held its 4th Annual Awards for Business Excellence at the Grand Savannah Suite, Pegasus Hotel in the city. Emerging the 2010 Winner of the Award for Business Excellence - Community Investment was Scotiabank (Guyana), with the National Milling Company Inc. copping the 2010 Winner of the Award for Business Excellence for Outstanding Performance by Peer Educators. Republic Bank Ltd. (Guyana) was adjudged the 2010 Winner of the Award for Business Excellence – Workplace Programme, while Edward B. Beharry and Company Ltd received Honourable Mention for Outstanding Performance by Peer Educators. The Guyana Power and Light Inc. and Grace Kennedy Remittance Services Ltd (Guyana) each received Honourable Mention for Workplace Programmes. Chairperson of the GBCHA, Mrs. Amanda St. Aubyn, in her opening remarks, said that the main purpose of the occasion was to celebrate ...

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Forum examines role of insurance sector in assisting PLHIV

Saturday, June 26, 2010 – 3:58 pm
Source:  Stabroek News A major part of the two-day fifth Annual Pan Caribbean Business Coalition (PCBC) Forum on HIV/AIDS was centred on what assistance insurance companies in the region could be given to better assist persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) and in the end it was concluded that more data is needed to better assist the companies. At the conclusion of the two-day event, which opened on Thursday at the Pegasus Hotel, President of the Insurance Association of the Caribbean Inc. Douglas Camacho said that while data is available on other illness there is none on HIV to better inform insurance companies. He pointed out that while persons living with the virus would not find it difficult to benefit from a pension scheme with insurance companies, the difficulty comes into play with life insurance. “It [life insurance for HIV infected persons] was discussed but the data is not there,” Camacho told Stabroek ...

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